Jeffery McCullough's Under a Southern Influence: Great American Art & Design : August 2012

Each year right about now I go into a funk, the only word that seems right for what I feel after I leave Provincetown. When I first visited P-town eight summers ago, I knew I had gone somewhere special but I had no idea that over time I would grow to love a place the way I do the little village at the tip of Cape Cod and feel that it is my spiritual home. I hope everyone has a place like this. A place that stays with them constantly and makes them yearn for more, makes them feel the need to be connected all the time even if it will be another eleven months possibly before returning to the physical place, a place that brings peace and happiness, love and understanding, a place that clears the head and allows for thoughts that will lead to growth and development.

Knowing that I would feel the way I do right now is exactly why I curated the Summer show at Lounge Gallery in Lafayette, LA. "To the Water...." is a beautiful show featuring paintings and photography by fourteen artists. I selected the artists included because of their great ability to capture a sense of time and place in their work and, moreover, because I need to connect with pieces on that level allowing art to transport me to the place I want to be. My vision for the show was that when folks walked into the gallery they would feel that they had been removed from the hot, humid Louisiana summer and taken "To the Water......", wherever the water might be. Whether it is a sailboat in the bay, a boat tied up at a lake marina, a fishing boat in the Atchafalaya basin, a view of the marsh, a branch in the woods, or a vast ocean scene, the artists in this show have created paradise in pieces that are beautiful, meditative, and transporting.

The closing reception for the show is this Saturday night during 2nd Saturday Art Walk in Lafayette. Here are some of my favorite pieces from the show that are taking me "To the Water......." today.

If you are in Louisiana on Saturday, be at Lounge Gallery for the reception from 5:30-8 pm. If you would like to purchase a piece or need more information on any piece or artist, please let me know. For now, enjoy my selections: